The global death toll due to the novel coronavirus pandemic has crossed 8,900 while the total number of confirmed cases reported so far is more than 2 lakh.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Wednesday noted that over 80% of all cases are from two regions – the Western Pacific and Europe and said that it is talking to ministers of health, heads of state, health workers, hospital managers, industry leaders, CEOs and more – to help them prepare and prioritize, according to their specific situation.

A pill containing two HIV drugs that was touted as a potential treatment for the novel coronavirus was not effective, according to a study released late on Wednesday in the New England Journal of Medicine.

A test in Chinese patients with severe COVID-19 disease found the 99 who received AbbVie Inc's Kaletra, a combination of lopinavir and ritonavir, fared no better than the 100 who received standard care.

The Supreme Court on Wednesday once again came down heavily on the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), which had filed a petition seeking relief for telcos in paying the dues linked to adjusted gross revenue (AGR). The court shot down the DoT proposal that telecom companies might be permitted a 20-year staggered payment and exemption from penalties and interest in relation to the AGR dues.

Air India on Wednesday implemented a series of cost-saving measures, including reduction in allowances and fuel reimbursement for officers. However, the move is being resisted by its cabin crew — All India Cabin Crew Association (AICCA) — who have called the move discriminatory and illegal.

Around the world, airlines are responding to COVID-19 crisis with sharp reduction in capacity, pay cuts and layoffs.

Facebook said a bug in its anti-spam system temporarily blocked the publication of links to news stories about the coronavirus. Guy Rosen, Facebook's vice president of integrity, said on Twitter Tuesday that the company was working on a fix for the problem.

Users complained that links to news stories about school closings and other information related to the virus outbreak were blocked by the company's automated system.

While the government has intensified its efforts to deal with the coronavirus pandemic, many are taking the opportunity to spread rumours among the people and create confusions. The Maharashtra government has warned such people of legal action if they spread misinformation regarding non-vegetarian food including chicken, mutton, and eggs.

The government has made it clear the administration is working on identification of such miscreants who are propagating fake information about the consumption of non-vegetarian food and strict action will be taken against them.

Shares of telecom companies declined as much as 40 per cent on Wednesday after the Supreme Court said that the self-assessment of adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues by the firms or the Department of Telecommunication (DoT) may amount to contempt of court.

Among individual stocks, Vodafone Idea tumbled 40 per cent to Rs 2.91 per share. At 11:35 am, the stock was trading 25.36 per cent lower at Rs 3.62 as compared to 2.06 per cent fall in Sensex.

Google on Wednesday appointed long-time industry veteran Karan Bajwa as Managing Director of Google Cloud in India.

A senior leader with over three decades of leadership experience, Bajwa will be responsible for driving all revenue and go-to-market operations for Google Cloud's extensive solution portfolio that includes Google Cloud Platform and G Suite in the country.

Senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh and Karnataka Congress chief DK Shivakumar were placed under preventive arrest in Bengaluru after they attempted to visit the hotel where several rebel Congress MLAs from Madhya Pradesh are staying.

Singh sat on a dharna outside the Ramada Hotel after he was not allowed by the police to meet the rebel lawmakers in the hotel. He was later taken into preventive custody by the police.

The coronavirus infection has reached the Indian Army as a soldier from Leh is reported to have tested positive for the virus. He was on leave from February 25 to March 1 and during that time, his father had returned from a pilgrimage in Iran.

The jawan is said to belong to the Ladakh Scouts. As per news reports, he is being treated while his family including his sister and wife have been put in quarantine. His father has also tested positive.

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